The Talking Machine Forum — For All Antique Phonographs & Recordings

Egads, I love this hobby!

I've had the 1A box for 31 years, and the III box for 3 years, but never put much thought into them until today. I've just come downstairs from comparing them (what a concept!), and maybe I've learned something. Or maybe not...

Below are photos of both boxes, and several things became obvious once I paid a little attention:

1) They are different sized.

2) The 1A box has 3 holes, while the III box has 2 holes.

3) Neither the typical Edison spring grease tube, nor the Dixon's Graphite tube (which came to me with the III) will fit into ANY of the holes!

4) The reproducers appropriate to the model WILL fit into the large spaces, if turned upside-down or sideways.

Here are the photos:

This view shows the boxes from a slight angle. The difference in height doesn't show well, but the Amberola III box (foreground) is about ¼" taller than the box for 1A (background). The original oiler and screwdriver are in the III box. Nothing was in the 1A box when I obtained the machine.
The next view shows the boxes from directly above. You can see that both boxes were originally nailed into the cabinet interiors with a single finishing nail (both of which have miraculously survived). If the reproducers were originally shipped in these boxes, they must have been well packed with cotton, cardboard, etc. The Amberola III box (left) seems to have been designed especially to accommodate the longer neck of a Diamond A reproducer. Finally, it looks as though both boxes had wooden lids that fit into them and were probably secured with tape, twine, etc. This means of course that the oilers and screwdrivers were not shipped in those holes, but in the larger compartments with the reproducers.
I don't know if any of this speculation is accurate, but it seems plausible. Isn't it amazing what becomes a bit clearer by getting up from the computer?

George P.

Hi,
I am so glad I asked this question because I now know the appearance of an original item I did not know existed and will be on the lookout for one. I bought my 1-A at auction in May and it came with an M reproducer.
I just purchased via ebay auction an A reproducer and was thinking about what original owners of 1-A did if they had an M for 2 and 4 min. wax records and an A for Blue Amberol records.
I bought the A reproducer because I have heard that they are better especially for late Blue Amberol records but also may give improved sound for earlier Blue Amberols. I am now thinking about an elegant solution for storing the second reproducer and one of these boxes would be a great solution!
Thank you all kindly,
Allen
p.s. I would like to hear any other thoughts on these boxes and other solutions.

I didn't think my box had any nail holes but after looking at George's boxes I found two holes. See pic, the holes have light peering thru them. It tells me that the box was nailed to the bottom of the cabinet on one side and nailed to the side of the cabinet on the other side. Tomorrow I will search the cabinet to see where it was placed.

On my 1A, the box is attached to the right side cabinet wall near the back right corner. The 3 holes are towards the back of the cabinet. Getting to it requires removing at least the smaller grill piece, and then reaching way down. It is not a spot one would access easily or frequently.

I never thought much about this utilitarian box, but this thread prompted me to check out the one in my Oak 1A, s/n 2851. It was empty and detached from the cabinet when I purchased the phonograph. It is the "two-hole-with-side-slot" design like the Amberola III example in George's photos, and is that color as well. There are two nails in it at the same location as the holes Andersun shows, with the bottom nail driven at an angle through the side so that it protrudes through the bottom of the box.

52089: I presumed the box was meant to be accessed through the rear door, not from the top. I don't consider the rear door easily accessible, either, as one has to move the phonograph away from the wall (unless it's in the middle of the room!).

If George's theory is correct, I wonder if someone threw a box from a III into my 1A? Odd. More data samples would be welcome. I envision a lot of us going to peek in the back door of our Amberolas due to this thread!

A Ford 1 wrote:Hi,

I just purchased via ebay auction an A reproducer and was thinking about what original owners of 1-A did if they had an M for 2 and 4 min. wax records and an A for Blue Amberol records.

Just a note of caution, Allen: if your Amberola 1A's mandrel has a nice oxidized bronze finish, don't put Blue Amberols on it. The plaster cores will scratch up that finish in short order.

George P.

Hi All and George P.,
My mandrel has the oxidized finish (not perfect) only on the right or open end and only a hint of what might have been on it on the far left. I may try to wax what remains on the mandrel to help keep it safe but to not play Blue Amberol records would defeat my reason for buying the A reproducer. May be if I get a B reproducer for my Standard I can compare the music of a Blue Amberol on each machine and make an educated decision on not using the 1-A to play Blue Amberol records. Buy the way, I may or may not have stated that I removed all the drawers and have noted all markings if any one is interested. I also found the top disc of the record 2139 "The International Rag Medley" and two very old bobby pins both with an acute angel of about 5 degrees not like the closed one I recall my sister and mother using in the forties and fifties. Also I noted there were still two brads in the floor looking in the back of the horn compartment where the box that I do not have was affixed. I only found the brads because I wiped out the dirt etc. from the floor of the horn compartment. Now the next time I move the machine I will check the side of that compartment for brads.
I also will be looking to get record 2139.
Allen
p.s. The A reproducer should arrive on or before Friday.

coyote wrote:
52089: I presumed the box was meant to be accessed through the rear door, not from the top. I don't consider the rear door easily accessible, either, as one has to move the phonograph away from the wall (unless it's in the middle of the room!).

Coyote, I must admit it didn't occur to me that it would be far easier to access the box through the back door, but you're right. This is particularly true because the 3 holes are slanted in such a way that removing anything from them practically requires opening the back door.

Here is the exact position of the box when the phonograph was shipped.

When I obtained my 1A, I found the weird little box inside and wondered about its use as well. The machine had come with an M reproducer, but sadly, the reproducer's 2/4 flipover speed change stalk had been snapped off and was nowhere to be found.

But then I peered into the weird little box, and there it was! A quick trip to Mr. Steve "Miracle Man" Medved got it all restored and reassembled and now it works like a champ.

So the weird little box definitely does have a use, albeit not probably as the factory originally intended.

(By the way, until further research can be completed at Orange and elsewhere, I propose we can safely use WLB as the interim moniker for this box. Just as sensible as OSB, in my estimation.)